


I See Fire

by Lecrit



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: 8 days of Malec, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Best Friends, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship/Love, M/M, Pop Culture, The Chairman is the real boss here, detective alec, oblivious idiots, so many pop cultures references
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-11
Updated: 2016-12-11
Packaged: 2018-09-08 00:02:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8821591
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lecrit/pseuds/Lecrit
Summary: There was one simple and unique rule about being friends with Magnus and Alec: never, ever, no matter the circumstances, not even if you were drunk as an armada of skunks, engage into a debate about pop culture with either of them, and especially not the both of them.Based on the prompt: "Malec obliterates Twilight".





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [crazyellephant](https://archiveofourown.org/users/crazyellephant/gifts).



> This is my secret santa gift to my lovely parabrotai Elle. I hope you like it, you nerd. <3
> 
> The prompt was: "Malec obliterates Twilight". I went overboard. Big surprise there.
> 
> This is unbeta'd so all the English mistakes can be pinned on my French ass. Thank you to the wife for the very precious help. Love ya.
> 
> Ps: Please use the #lecrit hashtag if you're live-tweeting or tag [me](https://twitter.com/_L_ecrit) so I can track it.

There was one simple and unique rule about being friends with Magnus and Alec: never, ever, no matter the circumstances, not even if you were drunk as an armada of skunks, engage into a debate about pop culture with either of them, and especially not  _ the both of them _ .

One, you would lose.

Two, it would last for hours.

Three, they would never let it go.

 

Seriously, never.

 

It was common knowledge, to all of their friends, but they often made the mistake of mentioning a movie they had seen, a book they had read or a TV show they had watched in front of them, and then there was nothing left to do but to wait until they were done rambling about it.

 

Truthfully, their first meeting should have been enough of a clue for their friends to get suspicious, but they hadn’t thought twice about it at the time.

They had met on a sunny day of April, and their bond had been almost instantaneous. Then again, there were very few things in life that could bring two people together as easily as a mutual hatred for Twilight.

Spring was just coming around the corner, the first happy songs of birds enjoying the end of the winter’s chilling atmosphere resonating from the park that bordered the precinct and Alec had been completely focused on re-re-reading the report he had written on the last arrest he had made. It was a great report, just like he liked them, with highlights on the keywords and a special focus on -

“Lightwood!”

Alec looked up from the stack of papers on his desk and shared an inquisitive look with Lydia, his partner, who simply shrugged.

He walked to Chief Garroway’s office and stood tall on his feet in the entrance, hands hooked behind his back.

“Sir?”

“You need to take a break,” Luke said, in an evasive tone that however left no room for argument.

“But -”

“Clary is downstairs in the archive room with Magnus to get some stuff but they apparently can't find it,” Luke cut in sternly. “You know that room by heart. Can you give them a hand? I know it's your definition of taking a break.”

He had said it all in one breath, and Alec would have taken offense if it hadn't been true. He did spend a lot of time in the archive room, studying old cases that could give him inspiration when Lydia and him were stuck in the middle of an investigation.

He didn't know who Magnus was, and he was only starting to warm up to Clary, but he nodded nonetheless.

“Yes, Sir,” he said with a polite smile, and made his way to the elevator.

The archive room was in the basement of the precinct, at the end of a long and gloomy corridor with an ancient tapestry on the walls that had made Alec rename the place The Overlook. Most of his colleagues had yet to understand the reference.

There were alleys and alleys of old and recent boxes, cold cases and closed ones, random stuff that had been left there throughout the years. It was a room full of history. Quiet, peaceful and -

“Alec! It’s so good to see you! Thank you so much for helping!”

People really needed to stop interrupting his thoughts.

Alec frowned, looking around him to find the source of the voice, earning a punch in the shoulder for his trouble.

“I’m right in front of you!” Clary exclaimed, scolding.

Alec glanced down at the redhead, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. “I’m sorry. You’re so small I didn’t see you there.”

Clary scoffed in indignation, but she quickly recovered, grabbing his forearm to drag him forward. She was surprisingly strong for such a tiny little thing.

He let himself be dragged to an alley at the back of the room, all the while listening to Clary blabber about how excited she were about moving in with Jace and all those boxes she had left with Luke and were now stored in the archive room, full of memories from her childhood and teenage years. Alec didn’t really care, but he listened to her anyway - because he didn’t have much of a choice, and because she was his brother’s girlfriend, so he had to pretend he was at least a little bit interested.

“Oh, and you have to meet Magnus,” Clary said with a wide smile. “You’re going to get along so well!”

If he was quite honest with himself, the first thing Alec noticed as they stumbled into a halt was a round and firm butt tucked into sinful skinny jeans that he was pretty sure were forbidden by law (and he would know, he was a detective after all) as the infamous Magnus - it could only be him, no one in the precinct would dare dress like that, or he would have noticed - was bending down to examine a box on a lower shelf. The next thing was the astoundingly attractive rest of him. Then, and that was the exact moment Alec’s mind decided to forget about the man’s overall breathtaking appearance, it was the demonic book he held in his hands.

Alec couldn’t help but to let his face pull into a grimace of pure and unabashed disgust.

“Clary,” Magnus said, and his voice was smooth and velvety like a sunrise - not that Alec really paid attention. “Please tell me the reason you own that piece of trash is because you needed argumentation to explain to the whole world why it is the worst thing that ever happened to vampire literature. Or English literature. Or literature. Or the history of humanity, really.”

This Magnus guy seemed to be a reasonable, measured guy, Alec decided.

Clary flushed, plucking the book out of his hands, and throwing it carelessly to the side. The man looked up then - and Alec had to stop staring at his magnificent ass, sadly - and startled at the sight of Alec, but he quickly recovered, flashing him a toothy grin that left Alec’s mouth a little dry.

“I was a teenager!” Clary protested. “Don’t judge! I didn’t know better back then!”

“So, you didn’t realize how poorly written it was?” Alec chimed in, lifting a dubious eyebrow at her. “Max could do better and he’s nine. I’ve read children books better than Twilight. Hell, I’ve read my microwave’s instruction books and it’s better than Twilight.”

Clary didn’t have a chance to reply, because Magnus was already outbidding Alec’s argument.

“I mean, if you wanted to go for a vampire love story, you could have gone for Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles. Or Dracula. That’s a good vampire story, with a plot that doesn’t consist in the heroine falling in love with the lame-ass vampire who sparkles under the sun. And don’t get me started on the questionable morals of this story. It’s basically preaching that the most important thing in the world for a girl to have is a boyfriend.”

“I know, right?” Alec exclaimed, nodding quickly. “And that Bella girl is so  _ empty _ . She has nothing that makes her stand out. She’s just plain ordinary so obviously the million of girls who read it can identify to her and slip into her character and imagine that they have two hot men fighting over her. Who wouldn’t want that?”

“Well, I certainly wouldn’t mind,” Magnus said with a smirk. “Oh, and let’s not forget the weird pro-life and anti-feminist stances littering throughout the books. I don’t even want to go into details or I’m gonna get angry.”

“Tell me about it,” Alec sighed. “Oh God, and when they have sex for the first time and he literally almost kills her with his powerful vampire dick? Why?” he exclaimed, throwing his arms up in the air in despair. “What is wrong with safe, not-life-threatening sex?”

“Darling, you’re preaching to the converted here,” Magnus said, putting a hand over his heart. “But we forgot the worst thing,” he added, sending him a pointed look.

“The werewolf falling in deep sexual love with the dumb couple’s newborn baby?” Alec offered.

“The werewolf falling in deep sexual love with the dumb couple’s newborn baby,” Magnus agreed with a defeated sigh.

“I’m Alec,” he said, extending a hand with a lopsided grin.

“Magnus,” he replied, and reached out to shake his hand. “It’s lovely to meet you.”

“Oh God,” Clary breathed out, staring at the two of them with blown eyes. “I created a monster. I feel like the doctor in Frankenstein.”

“Frankenstein  _ is _ the doctor,” they snapped in a same voice, and exchanged a look full of pleasant surprise and connivance, like they had finally found someone to match their intellect.

It was snark at first sight.

.

It was pretty meaningless to their friends, at first.

After that, they saw each other more frequently, because Clary moving in with Jace meant that Alec saw her more and more and Clary was rarely going out without her best friend Simon and Magnus, who was family to her.

The second time they saw each other was for Clary’s birthday party. Alec had been forced to come by his siblings, under threat on one side (Isabelle) and guilt-tripping on the other side (Jace), but in the end, he didn’t regret it.

Their apartment was in Soho and Alec had taken his bike to get there so he had kept it down on alcohol but it was still the wee hours of the morning when he came home. Because Jace kicked him and Magnus out when they launched themselves in a heated debate to figure out whether or not Leo would have fitted on that damn door.

“Of course he would have!” Magnus yelled at some point. “She let him die!”

“That’s not the point!” Simon argued just as loudly. “The point is that it’s  _ romantic _ . He died so she could live!”

Alec snorted from where he was standing next to Magnus, arms crossed over his chest. “Which is clearly a much better option than having the both of them living,” he said, sarcasm dripping off every word.

“Oh God,” Simon sighed. “Why did we let you two meet?”

“Clary!” Magnus called out. The redhead, who was leaning against a wall with Isabelle a bit further, curved an eyebrow. “Get your sketchbook and come here!”

She frowned but obliged, and the next twenty minutes were spent watching her drawing a door and two people according to Magnus and Alec’s instructions so they could prove to Simon how many possibilities they were for two people to fit in such a tiny space without drowning.

In the end, Simon admitted defeat.

“Stop running every classic for me,” he grumbled, throwing a dejected look at them both. “It’s like the Avatar debacle all over again.”

Magnus scoffed in indignation. “Avatar is just Pocahontas with blue people that have weird sex with their tails,” he said on a tone that suggested it wasn’t the first time.

“That’s what I keep saying!” Alec exclaimed, eyes blown in surprise.

“Of course it is,” Simon mumbled under his breath, rolling his eyes. “I’m outta here.”

And he left promptly to join Magnus’ best friend Raphael by the bar, pouring himself a far too generous glass of vodka, completely oblivious to Raphael’s slightly alarmed look.

“I really don’t want to have Sheldon’s alcoholism on my conscience,” Magnus said, lips pursed together.

“Hey, it’s not our fault if he can’t handle the truth,” Alec argued reasonably.

Magnus smiled, tipping his chin up just slightly enough to look into his eyes. “So… Who’s the best Doctor Who?”

“David Tennant, obviously,” Alec huffed out, almost offended.

Magnus nodded in agreement, humming pensively. “Best Batman?” he asked, tapping his index on his lips pensively.

“Bale.”

Magnus gasped dramatically. “What?”

“Christian Bale,” Alec repeated with a frown.

“No, he’s not!” Magnus exclaimed. “Michael Keaton!”

The second time they met was also the first time they argued. It was one of the best nights of Alec’s life, which was admittedly a little sad considering he had spent it arguing with an attractive guy instead of making out with him. Or at least that’s what Lydia said when he told her the whole story while they explored a crime scene on the following Monday morning. It had truly been a great night. Even when Jace came to tear them away from their argument at half past four in the morning to throw them out.

“You can settle this outside where people aren’t trying to sleep!” he yelled and slammed the door to their faces.

“I’m sure he’s team George Clooney,” Magnus snarled, and Alec laughed, loud and clear and unexpected.

“Do you want a ride back?” he asked, a small smile on his lips.

Magnus seemed to hesitate before he nodded, but his smile was just as wide.

“Just a second,” Alec said, and knocked on the door. “Jace!” he called out, loudly enough to be heard through the wood. “I need my helmet! And yours! I’m giving Magnus a ride back!”

The door opened hastily, bringing a draft that nearly made them swagger on their feet, and Alec barely had the time to see a glimpse of blond hair before two helmets were shoved in his hands and the door slammed shut again.

“He’s a bit of a drama queen,” he told Magnus.

“Go away!” Jace yelled through the door. “Go argue about superheroes somewhere else!”

“Well, you know, technically, Batman isn’t a superhero,” Magnus chimed in.

A frustrated groan whiffed through the door. “Go away or I call the cops!”

“Come on,” Alec said with a smirk, handing over a helmet and jerking his chin to the side to motion for Magnus to follow him. “He still hasn’t understood I’m a cop so he can’t use that threat on me.”

They walked to Alec’s bike in a comfortable silence and Magnus climbed behind him, hooking his arms around his waist swiftly, and then they were driving.

There was something magical about the streets of New York in the middle of the night. There were people around no matter how late - or early - it was, but they seemed to be part of a downworld that was meant to remain unknown to the ones who lived rather in the days. It was dark and exuberant all at once, joyful but mysterious and Alec loved it. If he knew anything about Magnus - and it wasn’t much at all, considering it was only the second time they saw each other - he did too.

Magnus lived in a high building near Brooklyn Bridge, not far from the tiny apartment Alec shared with a weird wannabe musician called Mark who was as messy as he was loud.

Magnus hopped down the bike and handed back the helmet.

“Thank you for the ride,” he said, and the words sounded oddly lewd in his mouth. He hesitated for a moment, chewing on his bottom lip but eventually, he hooked a hand on his hip, popping it to the side.

“Hey, they're showing Inception next weekend in the cinema at the corner,” he mused, pointing a long, elegant finger in the vicinity of a red neon light. “No one wants to come with me because apparently I'm an overanalyzing pain.” His tone made it obvious that the words weren't his. “Wanna tag along?”

His deep brown eyes were shining under the lamppost with something like hope, and Alec wouldn't be the one to drive it away.

“I'd love that,” he said truthfully, and Magnus’ broad grin was a reward on its own.

.

Two things resulted from this: a heated debate about whether or not Cobb was dreaming at the end of the movie, which brought them both headaches, and an definite agreement on Arthur and Eames absolutely not platonic relationship.

Mostly, they became friends, and their movie nights a weekly occurrence.

It was something for the both of them to look forward to. Their weeks could be stressful. Magnus was a lawyer and his argumentation was thus often hard to counter, but Alec loved the challenge and never lacked the arguments himself. They agreed just as often as they fought, but they were never as united as when it came to arguing with their friends, who soon started cursing ever introducing them.

They were both difficult persons to debate with separately, but they made for an unbeatable pair.

It took a month for them to become best friends, and five more for Alec to ditch Mark and move in with Magnus. Alec had been looking for a new apartment and Magnus hated the loneliness of his sophisticated but empty walls, so it seemed like an obvious solution.

It made things worse for their friends but all the more better for them, so they didn't really care.

After a particularly draining day, they would slouch on the couch together and watch a movie or a TV show, which more often than not ended up with the both of them falling asleep there, in the middle of an argument that sometimes ended on a compromise, sometimes… did not.

Those were never pretty to witness.

“Hufflepuff is the best!” Alec shouted, loud enough to make Chairman Meow, Magnus' cat who had adopted Alec as soon as he had stepped in the apartment for the first time, leap off his lap and flee to hide in his master's bedroom.

“No, it's not!” Magnus retorted just as loudly, standing in front of the couch with his hands on his hips. “Ravenclaw is! I could easily accept Slytherin but Hufflepuff, Alexander? Really?”

Alec's laugh was wry. “Of course you would. They have Draco Malfoy and you think he's hot!”

“Oh and I'm sure Newt Scamander isn't influencing your opinion at all,” Magnus hissed with narrowing eyes.

“No, he's not,” Alec protested. “Hufflepuff is the best for many reasons that your tight brain clearly can't understand!”

“Are you calling me stupid?” Magnus gasped in offense, eyes widening.

“I'm calling narrow-minded!” Alec yelled back, and immediately regretted it.

Magnus was many things. Opinionated was one of them, alongside stubborn, but he had never been narrow-minded, on the contrary. Alec didn't have the time to form an apology, though, because just as he was about to open his mouth, a pillow landed on his face, then a second one.

“Stop it!” he exclaimed, ducking to avoid a third pillow.

The fact that Magnus liked to bury the couch and armchairs with them didn't help. He had unlimited resources. He stepped forward instead of picking more, though, and chose to hit Alec directly, which was indeed much more efficient.

“You. Are. Such. An. Ass,” Magnus gritted out through clenched teeth, punctuating each word with a blow.

Eventually, Alec managed to catch his wrist mid-movement before he could hit him again.

“I'm sorry,” he blurted out quickly. “I didn't mean it.”

“Sure you did,” Magnus hissed, and he tried to snatch his arm out of Alec's grasp, in vain.

Alec tightened his hold, using his other hand to pluck the pillow away from Magnus.

“I'm sorry,” he said again. “You're not narrow-minded. You're actually one of the most open and tolerant people I've ever met.”

“And?” Magnus asked, his bottom lip protruded in a petulant pout.

“I'm not saying Ravenclaw is the best house,” Alec deadpanned.

Magnus huffed in indignation, rolling his eyes dramatically and Alec jerked to his feet, tugging on his wrist to draw him against his chest, wrapping his arms around him.

“I'm sorry,” he muttered.

“You're still an ass,” Magnus groaned, but he hugged him back nonetheless, circling his waist with his arms.

“You both need therapy,” a voice called from the side, and they glanced in a same movement at Isabelle, who was sprawled on the couch with a grace only she was capable of, her dark eyes boring into them like she was somehow equally bored and utterly stunned. “Seriously. You're insane.”

“We have important debates about important matters,” Magnus rectified.

“We all know Ravenclaw is the best house,” Izzy said, in a tone that suggested nothing but evidence. “Now, can we go back to watching the movie? I came here for a Harry Potter marathon, not a domestic quarrel.”

“Well, you got both,” Magnus said with a wide grin, drawing back from Alec to drape his long body on the other end of the couch. “Aren't you a lucky one?”

Isabelle chuckled, leaning in to grab the remote and start the movie again.

Alec rolled his eyes and sat back down between the two of them, letting his sister lean back against his shoulder and Magnus rest his feet on his lap.

“Hufflepuff is still the best house,” he grumbled.

“Oh, shut up,” Isabelle and Magnus replied in a same voice.

If Alec purposely kept sulking until Magnus got up to make him a hot chocolate, no one needed to know.

.

When Alec started dating Raj, he had been living with Magnus for four months. Their weekly movie nights remained even though Magnus himself was dating an insanely hot, guitar-playing man called Imasu. It wasn't a guitar, but Alec had given up on trying to remember the actual name of the instrument. All he knew was that Magnus was now banned from trying to learn how to play it because it was horrendous enough that it managed to scare even Chairman Meow, who was usually fearless enough to sneak in Alec's stuff and sleep in his socks drawer.

Going on a double date had been Magnus’ idea and if Alec had been reluctant at first, he eventually recognized the need for his boyfriend to meet one of the most important people in his life. If Raj was going to stick around, he might as well get used to putting up with Magnus as soon as possible.

And Alec truly hoped he would stick around. Raj was nice, smart, good looking, and didn't mind that Alec was a cop who sometimes worked insane hours and had to cancel a date at the last minute. It helped that Raj worked in law enforcement himself.

It had been decided - or more accurately, Magnus had decided - that the best course of action was a movie and then dinner in a Chinese restaurant they specially favored, enough so that the owners had started calling them by their names and knew which table was their favorite.

It occurred to Alec, but too late, that perhaps it hadn't been the greatest idea Magnus had ever had, because movie night also meant debate night, and their respective boyfriends clearly hadn't been prepared for  _ that _ .

Alec had warned - amiably - Raj about Magnus' quirks and eccentricities, but he hadn't mentioned how they could both turn into full-on politician mode when they were discussing something as important as the everlasting differences between Marvel and DC.

“I'm just saying Marvel characters are easier to relate to,” Magnus said, holding his hands up in defense. “Aquaman and Superman? Yeah they’re nice and all… for superheroes. They’re never seen as people. They’re just superheroes. How am I supposed to identify to them?”

“Well, Clark Kent is a journalist,” Raj pointed out carefully, frowning. “That’s a human job.”

“But did you ever see him write an article?” Alec chimed in, smirking.

“Good point, darling,” Magnus said, and there was something like approval and a hint of pride in his tone, which made Alec roll his eyes. “And seriously, if you insist on making all your characters supernatural aliens and invincibles gods, why do you kill them off so easily? How many times did Superman die? The guy is supposed to be the greatest superhero of their team and he keeps dying. Doesn’t scream reliable to me.”

“Okay, but DC has the Joker,” Raj disputed, a smug smile pulling at the corner of his lips. He leaned back in his chair, resting his arm on the back of Alec’s one, looking all too self-confident.

“Exactly,” Magnus said, a mischievous spark twinkling in his eyes. “DC has great villains...”

“But Marvel has the best heroes,” Alec concluded. “Because you can relate to them. They're humans.”

Raj was clearly a clever man who could admit defeat when it was staring at him, because he sighed, and closed his mouth. Alec smiled, if not a bit pitifully, and leaned in to kiss him.

“I still like DC better,” Raj rushed out before he could even reach his mouth.

“What the fuck?” Alec exclaimed dramatically. Magnus had been rubbing off on him more than he had realized. “I was about to kiss you!”

“And now you're disappointed,” Raj retorted tauntingly. “It's a completely human feeling. I'm sure Captain America could relate.”

“Oh, speaking of Captain America!” Magnus blurted out abruptly. “I promised your brother I'd lend him that book about pop art he wants to study to woo Clary even more. You have to remind me to take it to family brunch on Sunday!”

Alec nodded, storing the information in a corner of his brain when Raj straightened on his seat, curving an inquisitive eyebrow.

“Family brunch?”

“Yeah,” Alec said with an easy smile. “We have brunch with my parents and my siblings every Sunday if we're not working,” he explained without an ounce of hesitation.

Raj blinked, his lips parting slightly. His gaze drifted to the side for a second, observing Imasu’s reaction, but he was entirely focused on Magnus, looking at him like he held the sun and the stars in the palm of his hands, so he focused back on Alec and Magnus.

“You have brunch with your family every weekend,” he repeated slowly, like the words were too shocking to be said any faster and he was trying to prepare them for the fall. “With Magnus.”

“Yeah,” Alec replied, nodding.

“And your parents.”

“Yeah,” he said again. “They love Magnus.”

“Of course they do,” Raj muttered with a smile that suddenly seemed awfully forced. He added something else under his breath but all Alec could make out was “Lightwood” and “in common”.

.

“You're in love with your roommate.”

“What?” Alec scoffed in indignation. “No, I'm not. Magnus is my best friend.”

They were standing in front of Raj's front door, a helmet in both their hands and Raj was standing next to Alec, arms crossed over his chest.

“I'm sure he is,” he said, lips pressed tightly together. “And much more than that.”

“This is ridiculous,” Alec exclaimed. “I'm not in love with Magnus!”

“How does he take his coffee?” Raj asked, lifting a defiant eyebrow.

“With milk and a ridiculously high number of sugars. But he likes tea better after noon,” Alec replied automatically, brow furrowed in confusion. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“How do I take my coffee?” Raj asked then.

Alec opened his mouth to answer, but the words remained stuck in his throat, and as much as he turned and turned his brain around, he was clueless.

“B-black?” he tried, and the heavy sigh Raj blew out in answer was probably not a good sign.

“I don't like coffee,” he said, a hint miserably. “How many coffee dates have we had? Five? Ten? And you don't know I drink tea but you probably know exactly how many tea leaves Magnus likes in his.”

“Of course not,” Alec blurted. It was six. Six tea leaves. Not that he would tell Raj. “And come on, I live with him! Of course I know all this.”

“And you're dating me,” Raj argued. “And yet I feel like the third wheel in your relationship with him. You guys have brunch with your family every Sunday, for god's sake!”

“Is that what this is about?” Alec inquired, genuinely confused. “Brunch? You can come to have brunch with us if you want.”

“I don't want you to invite me because you feel obligated to do it,” Raj sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Look, you don't realize it and that's fine, but you're in love with your best friend and I'm not gonna wait around for the day you realize it and dump me all of a sudden. We're done.”

“Raj,” Alec called out, reaching out to stop him but Raj was already turning on his heels and disappearing inside the building.

Alec stayed there for five minutes, lips parted in shock, but he eventually slid his helmet back on and drove back to the apartment.

.

“You're in love with your roommate. “

“What?” Magnus gasped in indignation, staring unabashedly at Imasu’s naked body as he shuffled around the room to gather his discarded clothes. “What are you talking about?”

“It's okay, my love,” Imasu said with a soft smile. “We do not control those things.”

“I'm not in love with Alec,” Magnus protested. “He's my best friend!”

“You're wearing one of his sweaters,” Imasu pointed out, heaving.

“It’s comfy!” Magnus protested.

“So is the cashmere one I got you,” Imasu retorted, and he looked somehow more amused than anything.

“But -”

“It's okay, sweetness,” Imasu said, walking to the bed to cup Magnus’ cheek in his hand. “But you'll have to make a choice eventually.”

“A choice?” Magnus echoed, puzzled.

“Well, yeah. Him or me. You can't have both.”

“You want me to choose between my friendship with Alec and you?” Magnus asked bemusedly.

Imasu simply nodded, humming in confirmation.

“Well, you know where the door is,” Magnus gritted out through clenched teeth, without an ounce of hesitation.

.

Alec slouched on the couch next to Magnus and plucked the bottle of vodka out of his hand, taking a long sip.

“I got dumped,” he explained at Magnus’ inquisitive glance.

Magnus took the bottle and did the same. “Sucks,” he commented absently, if not a little sloppily. “I dumped Imasu.”

“What?” Alec exclaimed bewilderedly. “But I thought you liked him. And that he was - how did you say it ? - very skilled with his guitar-playing fingers.”

“It's called the charango,” Magnus grumbled. “You know it is. He asked for more than I was willing to give,” he heaved out, shrugging. “And you, what happened?”

“I'm apparently not… emotionally available enough for him,” Alec put out diplomatically, grimacing as the alcohol burnt its way down his throat.  

“His loss,” Magnus muttered, and wiggling his fingers for the bottle. “He was a DC fan anyway.”

“And he didn't like Khaleesi,” Alec added pointedly. “It was doomed from the start.”

“Book Khaleesi or show Khaleesi?” Magnus asked, shuffling on the couch to lean against Alec.

“He hasn't read the books,” he huffed out. “I tried to make him read them but he wouldn't.”

“Really? And you didn't give him shit like you did with me to make me read them?”

“My puppy eyes didn't work on him,” Alec replied with a shrug. “They totally work on you.”

“I'm so weak for those demonic hazel eyes of yours,” Magnus allowed. “You're a manipulative fucker.”

“Don't act like I forced you into anything,” Alec chuckled, resting his cheek on the top of Magnus’ head. “You read the first paragraph and you were hooked.”

“Well, they are much better than the show,” Magnus remarked. “He didn't deserve you. You deserve someone who reads the books you recommend them and shares your undying devotion for Jon Snow.”

Alec huffed out an incredulous laugh, fingers playing absently with the label of the bottle.

“You don't have to cheer me up, Magnus,” he muttered. “I'm not really that sad. It's not like I was in love with the guy. I liked him, sure, but there was no real… connection.”

“Alexander,” Magnus gasped dramatically. “Are you saying you used poor, innocent, smitten Raj for his body?”

Alec snorted and rolled his eyes, not that Magnus could see it.

“Says the guy who spent an hour showing me shirtless pictures of Imasu the other day.”

“But by what right does the wolf judge the lion?” Magnus exclaimed dramatically, flailing on the other side of the couch with ethereal grace.

“You know nothing, Magnus Bane,” Alec retorted with a smirk, slouching further on the couch to rest his feet on the coffee table.

“Wanna binge watch season one and take a shot every time we see boobs?” Magnus asked, wiggling his eyebrows playfully. 

“We’re likely to end up in a coma,” Alec argued, but he got up to grab their DVD box with a smile, and it was so easy despite his relatively lousy night that it was a blessing on its own.

“Perfect,” Magnus said, and there was no arguing that.

And it was indeed perfect.

.

The thing Alec hated the most about criminals was that they didn’t care at all about his social life - not that it was usually thrilling - and even less about his sleeping schedule.

Alec loved his job, he really did, and he was incredibly proud every time he managed to arrest a bad guy and put him behind bars. He was also a bit of a perfectionist. So when he encountered the first real struggle of his career, it became close to an obsession.

Lydia was no better and as much as she was a great partner, caring, professional and insanely intelligent, she wouldn’t be the one to nudge him to go home when she was herself still sitting with him at midnight trying to decipher something they could have missed.

The Angel of Death - Alec hated that the press always had to found the most stupid and graphic nicknames for serial killers - was extremely violent, gruesome and annoyingly smart. Smart enough to never leave a clue behind him, even when his murders were so savage that one would think he couldn’t have the presence of mind to wipe up evidences after him.

There was no pattern in the series of his victims, no correlation whatsoever, and it was driving Alec mad. As much as he was honored Chief Garroway had entrusted him to take care of this case, it was also ruining his life.

Which was only furthermore proved when he came home after an exhausting day, dragging himself more than walking, to find Magnus fast asleep on the couch, a quiet snore seeping through his parted lips, the Chairman curled up under his arm.

The cat perked up at the sight of Alec and meowed his content, leaping off Magnus to come rub against his legs.

“How long have you guys been waiting for me?” Alec asked him, and only got a purr in answer when he bended down to scratch between his ears.

He kneeled next to the couch, reaching out to shake Magnus’ shoulder gently. Brown eyes fluttered open, heavy with drowsiness, and Magnus rubbed his palms against his eyelids.

“You missed movie night,” he said, voice hoarse with sleep but somehow still oddly disappointed. It made something painful tug in Alec’s chest.

“I know,” he murmured. “I’m sorry. Work is kicking my ass.”

“It’s okay,” Magnus grunted. “Bad guys don’t take a break.”

“They could make an effort for movie night,” Alec said playfully, if only to coarse a smile out of Magnus.

It worked. “How very discourteous of them,” he whispered.

“Come on,” Alec sighed, nudging him gently. “Go to bed. You’re going to hurt your back.”

Magnus hummed and rolled off the couch, dragging himself to his bedroom.

“If you miss movie night next week, I’ll go after this fucking Angel of Death myself,” he warned. “He won’t know what hit him,” and he promptly shut his bedroom door, leaving Alec standing in the living room, lips pressed together tightly.

.

Magnus hated solitude. He didn’t mind being alone, but he couldn’t bear feeling lonely.

This was a feeling he had grown foreign to in his months living with Alec, so when Alec started working crazy hours to solve a case and Magnus going home to find an empty apartment basically every night of the week, it came back full force.

And Magnus had many quirks to prevent himself from focusing on the gaping hole in his chest. One of them was Chairman Meow.

The poor creature became the victim of his attempts at distracting himself and by the end of the first month, his feline wardrobe had grown exponentially.

Maybe the Hufflepuff tie had been pushing it a bit far, but the Chairman looked impossibly cute with it and he didn't try to rip it off savagely, so Magnus concluded that Chairman was a traitor who favored Alec's house rather than Magnus’. He didn't mind that much.

He knew Alec couldn't help it. This case was driving him crazy and the Angel of Death - seriously, journalists were so extra - had showed no sign of slowing down his killing spree.

Dressing up the Chairman had at least picked Alec's interest and although they didn't see each other much, because Magnus left for work early in the morning before Alec was even up, and came home to an empty apartment, the only clue of Alec’s presence the books he left laying around, littered in the living room.

They still texted during the day, silly things they found amusing, grocery shopping lists or raging comments about a stupid colleague, but Magnus hated it. Texting made Alec’s absence more pregnant, more  _ real _ . So he found another solution.

Before he left for work in the morning, he wrote a little note on a post-it and left it on the kitchen table.

The first one simply said “May the Force be with you” and he hadn’t expected an answer but when he came home that night, Alec had replied. It was a simple “All too easy,” and Magnus actually chuckled through a mouthful of noodles he had picked up on his way back home.

So Magnus made a habit out of it. Coming home to Alec’s succinct but snarky notes made his absence more bearable and Magnus’ solitude less overwhelming. Sometimes, it was just a quick “Had a shitty day, thanks for the leftovers” or “Serial killers suck”, but it could be more elaborate too. Magnus came home one evening to an all caps note saying “STOP BUYING ALL THESE OUTFITS FOR THE CHAIRMAN, HE’S GETTING SASSY ABOUT IT”, and Magnus was dying to know what exactly this was about, but the Chairman turned out to be awfully uncooperative when he asked him.

Eventually, even the notes weren’t enough. Alec was spending more time at the precinct than he did at home, and his exhaustion was palpable even in his handwriting, getting edgier and edgier as the days went by.

The fact that the Angel of Death had started to leave another kind of note, taunting and condescending, to the police on his crime scenes clearly wasn’t going to help Alec put a damper on his insane hours, so it definitely wasn’t going to help Magnus quench his need for his best friend.

In the end, it was the Chairman himself who gave Magnus the brilliant,  _ totally unproblematic _ solution to this impediment.

They were both nonchalantly sprawled on the couch one evening, the cat curled up on Magnus’ stomach, his eyes wide open as he played lazily with the strings of the hoodie he was wearing, which belonged to Alec but if Magnus wanted to pretend he was wearing it because it was the first thing he had laid his hand on when he changed after his shower, no one could stop him.

Magnus could feel his eyes slowly starting to close and as much as he was fighting to stay awake and be there when Alec would come home, it was a battle he knew he was going to lose. He was working crazy hours himself, and his whole body felt drained, the emotional torment in his heart only adding to the physical one.

The Chairman meowed pitifully and Magnus fluttered his eyes open, and only then did he realize he had shut them for good.

“Yeah,” he mumbled in a hoarse voice. “You’re right. I should go to bed.”

The cat meowed again and went to hide his face in the crook of his elbow, ears tipping down.

“I miss him too,” Magnus sighed and he dropped a kiss on his cat’s head before dropping him on the floor gently. He stretched, his neck painfully sore from the position he had kept for hours, and rose from the couch, dragging his feet to his bedroom. That was what he was about to do: go to his room, change into his flamboyant PJ, fall head first onto his bed and sleep for the next twelve hours.

At least, it had been his plan until he caught sight of the Chairman sneaking his way into Alec’s bedroom by the slightly ajar door.

“You lucky bastard,” he grumbled, shrugging the hoodie off. “And you have the nerve to pretend understanding me when you go and sleep on his bed like the little traitor you are. I was wrong, you’re totally Slytherin.”

He got no answer. Not that it was much of a surprise. What he got, though, was an idea creeping at a corner of his mind and settling there, refusing to leave. It was very much like the Chairman when he had decided he shall be pet and thus climbed onto Magnus or Alec and nipped at their fingers until either of them would indulge him and oblige.

It wouldn’t be the first time they would sleep side by side, he pondered to himself. Before Alec had moved in with him and even more ever since he had, they had fallen half on top of each other on the couch more times than he could count.

So, Magnus wiped off his makeup, brushed his teeth, changed into his PJ and took the direction of Alec’s room instead of his own, climbing onto the bed and sliding under the covers with a content sigh. He fell into a peaceful slumber within five minutes, his devious cat curled up at his feet.

.

When Alec had once told Magnus he could relate to the characters in the Walking Dead, he had meant Glenn Rhee, not the zombies, but there he was now. 

The last month had been admittedly, and without exaggerating in the slightest, the worst of his life. He couldn’t remember when his last day off had been, or when he had taken some time to relax and not obsess over the Angel of Death case.

He had always been a morning person but now he longed for a few more minutes in bed in the morning. And he missed his quiet evenings with Magnus watching movies or TV shows and debating for hours on the smallest details that most people would overlook without a second thought. He missed the time when his exhaustion was solely due to them being unable to find out whereas they were team Iron Man or team Captain America and discussing it until the wee hours of morning only to realize both sides presented solid arguments they couldn’t go against. He missed his best friend’s quirks and even the little notes he had started to eagerly wait for every morning weren’t enough to satisfy this hole.

He missed Magnus, period.

Which was probably the reason why he didn’t try to argue when Chief Garroway stopped in front of his office that night, arms crossed over his chest and a deep frown on his face.

“Go home, Lightwood,” he told him in a tone that left no room for negotiation. “And take the day off tomorrow. I don’t want to see your face here or I’ll drag you back to your apartment myself and have Magnus lock you in.”

“Yes, Sir,” he mumbled, gathering his badge and his gun without further ado.

Luke seemed surprised to see him yield without an argument, but it was a testimony of how tired he was and they both knew it.

He dragged himself to his bike and made sure to be extra careful on the road, knowing his fatigue could be dangerous for him and for others, but it was already late at night and there wasn’t the usual traffic, so he got to the building parking without trouble.

He was already half asleep when he turned the key into the door and stumbled inside. It smelled like cinnamon and oranges, because Magnus pushed his love of Christmas to the point where he even chose season-themed scented candles but it was comforting and warm, and Alec felt some of his tension leave his shoulders almost as soon as he stepped into the living room.

The apartment was quiet, plunged into darkness, and Alec toed off his shoes carelessly in the middle of the living room and managed to take a shower before he headed to his bedroom, only to stop dead in his tracks.

He blinked, trying to figure out whether he was dreaming or not, but Magnus was still there after he did, curled up in the bed and sleeping peacefully, Chairman Meow tucked under his arm. Alec smiled a small smile, swallowing past the lump in his throat and slid under the covers, shuffling closer to Magnus’ warmth, careful not to wake him.

But Magnus had always been a light sleeper and he shifted in his sleep, groaning.

“It’s me,” Alec whispered, reaching out to pet the cat’s head. “What are you doing here? Had a bad dream about Gollum coming after you and stealing your precious rings?”

Magnus half snorted half snored and drifted closer, burying his face in the space between their pillows.

“I miss you,” he murmured in his drowse.

“I miss you too,” Alec sighed.

He wrapped his arms around Magnus and promptly fell asleep, content with this semblance of peace in the middle of the storm.

.

The following day had one and only one rule: no going out of the apartment, no matter the reason.

“Unless someone is dying, or close to,” Alec had argued, always the pragmatic one, to which Magnus’ only response had been a roll of his eyes that pretty much meant “let them die”.

Alec slept well into the morning and woke up to Magnus dancing to Christmas cheesy songs in their living room, dressed in a ridiculous sweater with a cat wearing a Santa hat that he somehow managed to rock. How he could look as good as he did in outfits that would look ridiculous on anyone else was something Alec would probably never understand.

“Alexander,” he exclaimed when he saw him standing in the threshold and he bounced his way to him with his eternal grace, wrapping a bright red glittery garland around Alec’s neck.

“We’re doing the Christmas tree today,” he said, and Alec simply nodded, knowing too well there was no point in arguing with Magnus when he was in this mood.

So he obliged, following Magnus’ instructions and settling garlands and baubles in his convenience while Magnus watched him with narrowed eyes, scrutinizing his every move.

“No,” he exclaimed every now and then. “More to the left.”

“You know, it’d be much easier if you did it yourself,” Alec pointed out, because it was true.

“What’s the point of having a roommate slash best friend as tall as you if I don’t use it to my advantage? Also, it gives me a great opportunity to ogle that glorious ass of yours,” Magnus argued and Alec grumbled under his breath, but turned back to the tree nonetheless.

It wasn’t until dinner, when they were huddled together on the couch under a warm blanket, the Chairman laying on the back of the couch behind them, that Magnus allowed himself to burst the relative peacefulness they had found if only for a day. They were in the middle of watching It’s a Wonderful Life and they both knew it by heart, so Magnus didn’t feel too bad about interrupting.

“How’s the investigation going?” he asked cautiously.

Alec’s brow furrowed and Magnus regretted asking immediately, but his friend shrugged and didn’t let the tension seep back to his shoulders.

“We’re getting nowhere,” he sighed. “I have looked and looked at all the clues at least a hundred times. I went back to the crime scenes just as often. The only real clue we found is a black card he dropped on his way out after his last murder, but there’s nothing on it but a bunch of numbers that make no sense at all. No fingerprints, no -”

“What does the card look like?” Magnus interrupted, frowning.

“Told you, it’s just a black card with nothing on it but numbers,” Alec grumbled. “It took us nowhere. It’s not magnetised or anything. It’s just a plasticized card with nothing on it.”

“Would the numbers be preceded by two letters by any chance? DW?”

Alec blinked, surprise flashing in his eyes. “We didn’t tell the press about it. How do you know?”

“DW stands for DownWorld,” Magnus explained. “It’s a private club, for the wealthiest bachelors of New York. Your guy must be rich as fuck if he owns one of these.”

“How do you know about it?” Alec asked, straightening up on the couch, and Magnus could almost see the wheels speeding up in his brain.

“My ex-girlfriend owns it,” he said. “Camille.”

“The evil bitch who cheated on you with some politician’s son and then tried to get back with you when he dumped her?”

“The one and only,” Magnus snorted dejectedly.

“Where is that club?” Alec asked, shooting up to his feet. “I need to go there right now.”

“No,” Magnus whined, holding his arms out to beckon him back under the blanket. “It’s your first day off in forever. Call someone else.”

“I’ve worked my ass off on that case for months, I can’t let someone else deal with something that could be so important!” Alec protested.

Magnus slouched back on the couch, defeated.

“You’re pouting,” Alec said.

“I’m not,” Magnus grumbled. “Go save the world.”

“See it that way: this is our first serious lead, and it might just bring us to the killer and once we catch him, I won’t be doing all those crazy hours and we can get back to movie night and take out once a week.”

Magnus smiled a small smile when Alec squatted to be on eye level with him, tilting his head to the side.

“Fine,” he exclaimed dramatically, slamming his open palm in Alec’s face and pushing him away. “Take your demonic hazel puppy eyes away from me and go catch the bad guy while I stay here and talk shit about you with Chairman Meow.”

“Sounds like a great plan,” Alec chuckled, leaning in to drop a kiss on Magnus’ forehead. “I do it all the time when I’m alone with the Chairman. He too thinks you’re full of shit and that Chris Evans is the hotter Chris.”

“Come on!” Magnus yelled at Alec’s retreating form. “Have you seen Chris Hemsworth? The guy  _ literally _ is a god.”

Alec laughed and waved over his shoulder, already shrugging on his jacket and tucking his phone between his shoulder and his ear.

.

“This sweater is the most traumatizing thing I have ever seen and I’ve seen The Last Airbender movie,” Magnus said with a disgusted grimace as he opened his front door.

“Simon made me wear it,” Raphael grunted in response, shoving his way inside.

“If an elf and a Christmas tree had sex, they would probably produce something less ugly than this sweater.”

“Hey, it’s not that bad!” Simon protested, following his boyfriend inside, a slight bounce to his steps.

“No, you’re right,” Magnus snorted. “It could be worse. It could sing Jingle Bells too.”

The heavy silence that followed was enough of an answer.

“It does?” Magnus exclaimed, and burst into laughter when Raphael’s only reply was a dejected groan.

“You just have to press Rudolf’s nose,” Simon said with a conceited smirk.

“Okay, what’s happening?” Magnus asked with a matching mischievous expression, crossing his arms over his chest. “How did you convince him to wear it?”

“He called me an idiot in Spanish and thought I couldn’t hear him,” Simon whispered for Magnus’ ears only, leaning in. “I’m not really that mad, but it was too good of an opportunity to let it go.”

“And that is why I like you, Sméagol,” Magnus told him, patting his shoulders benevolently.

Simon rolled his eyes, but didn’t try to correct Magnus. He had long abandoned this idea.

“So, why did you call?” Raphael asked.

“Alec had to get back to work and I didn’t want to spend the evening alone,” Magnus admitted begrudgingly. “Watching Home Alone when you’re alone at home is paradoxically extremely depressing and not funny at all.”

“You never minded watching Christmas movies on your own before,” Raphael scoffed, lifting an eyebrow. It would have seemed much more impressive if he wasn’t wearing the ugliest Christmas sweater Magnus had ever seen.

“That’s because you never let me make comments during movies,” Magnus said with narrowing eyes. “But I am willing to let this awful habit of yours slip today because I really don’t want to be alone.”

Simon’s eyes were soft when they settled on him. “You really miss Alec, don’t you?”

Magnus chewed on his bottom lip. “He works a lot, I get it. I just wish I could go home at least once a week and have my best friend already here. I had to sleep in his bed to have a talk to him.”

Raphael blinked and his bewildered expression matched curiously the red and green lights flickering on his sweater. “You went to sleep in his bed because you missed him too much?”

Magnus shrugged, heading to the kitchen to grab a bottle of wine and three glasses. “At least then I know he actually came home,” he mumbled. At Simon’s puzzled expression, he heaved out a deep sigh, and stopped trying to find something to distract himself with, setting his hands flat on the table. “He’s so invested in catching that guy… that fucking Angel of Death, and… well, he’s a psychopath. He’s already been leaving them those freaking notes. I can’t be sure he won’t be hurt eventually. I just… feel better about it if I hear him come in, even if it’s in the middle of the night.”

“You’re so in love it’s not even funny,” Raphael said, oddly disappointed. “I can’t make fun of you when you look so miserable.”

“You couldn’t make fun of me while you’re wearing that thing anyway,” Magnus retorted, gesturing vaguely to his sweater. “And I’m not in love with Alec. He’s my best friend.”

“You say that like you can’t combine the two,” Simon chimed in, sounding much wiser than he usually did. “I’m in love with my best friend, and it’s pretty great.”

Magnus frowned. “Clary? I thought you were over that.” He took a step closer, poking a straightening finger on his chest. “If you’re playing Raphael, I will punch you Tyler Durden style.”

“He meant me, dumbass,” Raphael cut in, a taunting smirk tipping the corner of his lips up.

Magnus turned a puzzled look to Simon, who simply nodded, clearly amused. “Oh. We’re good then,” he said, shrugging.

“You’re in love with Alec and he’s in love with you,” Raphael said again, but Magnus scoffed stubbornly, crossing his arms over his chest. “For God’s sake, your fridge is covered in those stupid notes you guys leave for each other!” he exclaimed, and reached out to pick the first one he could lay his hand on. “I’m just saying I really don’t get the ending,” Raphael read out loud, and grabbed the following note. “What? Alec, get out of my apartment! The ending of the Graduate is beautiful!”

“I live here too,” Simon read, huffing out a soft laugh. “And you wouldn’t survive a day without me.”

“I’ve been surviving without you for the past month, you idiot.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I miss you.”

“I miss you too,” Raphael read and looked up to throw Magnus a pointed glare. “You’ve never been as upset because you couldn’t see a friend as you’ve been with Alec, Magnus. And I’ve known you for a long time. You didn’t sulk that much when Ragnor moved back to London. Correct me if I'm wrong, which I'm not, but Alec still lives in New York, and with you.”

“Oh,” Magnus breathed out. His heart sunk in his chest, and then leaped in his throat, knocking the air out of his lungs. “Shit, I'm totally in love with my best friend.”

“And the penny drops,” Simon said, and he was so cheerful that Magnus couldn't refrain from smacking the back of his head. Because it was the mature thing to do when one realized he was in love with one's best friend.

.

Alec slouched on the chair behind his desk, a wide, slightly manic grin on his lips.

Lydia watched him squirm on his chair and chuckled.

“Go ahead. I can see you can't wait another second,” she said, tone playfully reprimanding. “Call him.”

Alec didn't waste another second, plucking his phone out of his pocket and pressing speed dial. Magnus answered on the third ring, but it was more a groan than a coherent answer.

“Hurmph.”

“We got him!” Alec blurted out immediately.

“Mmh?” Magnus grumbled. “What?”

“The Angel of Death,” Alec exclaimed, shooting up to his feet and walking to the nearest window, unable to stay put any longer. “We arrested him!”

“Oh, darling, that’s amazing!” Magnus said, and he sounded more awake now. “That was quick.”

“He was at the club,” Alec explained. “We went there just to talk to Camille, to see if she could track the owner of the card but it turned out he was there with some escort girl. Camille was a real bitch, by the way.”

Magnus snorted. “Tell me something I don’t know.”

“She only agreed to tell us anything when I told her we were looking for a serial killer,” he said, deliberately evasive.

Magnus moaned in relief, and Alec knew he was stretching in bed. He always made the most ridiculously voluptuous noises when he did. “What aren’t you telling me?” Magnus asked, the smile evident in his voice.

Alec bit on his bottom lip, but he knew he couldn’t lie to Magnus’ face, so he might as well not lie to him on the phone either. “I may or may not have implied that she fitted the killer’s victim profile and that she was in grave danger for her life. And also that I would arrest her for obstruction to justice if she didn’t start talking.”

“And by imply, you mean you told her exactly like that, right?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

Magnus giggled. “I am very proud of you.”

Alec rolled his eyes, leaning against the wall to watch the traffic by the window. The roads were already packed, and it was only half past six.

“Don’t roll your eyes at me,” Magnus said, scolding.

“How did you -”

“I know you,” Magnus cut in, and Alec could picture his smirk. “Now come home and sleep for the next three days. You earned it.”

“I’m on my way,” Alec said, smiling to himself. “Go back to sleep.”

“Mmh,” Magnus mumbled, and he was snoring softly the next second.

Alec chuckled, grinning as he stared down at his screen, and hung up. When he swirled around, heading back to his desk to grab his stuff, Lydia was already there, leaning against it, arms crossed over her chest and a shit-eating grin on her face.

Alec lifted an eyebrow. “What?”

“So when are you going to stick your head out of your ass and ask him out on a proper date?” she asked.

“Why would I do that?” Alec scoffed in indignation. “Magnus is my best friend.”

“John is my best friend,” Lydia said defiantly. “Doesn’t mean I’m any less in love with him. Actually, it’s quite the opposite.”

“I’m not in love with Magnus,” Alec said, shoving his gun back in the holster around his waist.

“Alec, I’ve known you for years,” Lydia said, clearly slightly annoyed. “I’ve known you before Magnus, and after Magnus, and I can tell you grew significantly happier. I also know that not so long ago, the first person you would have called to share a good news was Isabelle. Then Jace. And yet, the first person you called today was Magnus.”

“Lightwood!” Luke yelled from the side. “What are you still doing here? Go home before I kick your ass!”

Alec startled, but took the opportunity to run away from Lydia’s shrewd look, gathering his jacket and his helmet.

“Going now, Sir!” he exclaimed, and turned back to Lydia, dropping a kiss on her forehead. “See you later.”

Lydia rolled her eyes and punched his shoulder. “You can’t run away from your feelings forever!”

“The only thing I’ve running away from right now is my invasive best friend,” Alec retorted, and fled towards the door, Lydia’s knowing laughter echoing after him.

.

Alec dragged himself into the apartment, his skin still buzzing from the night’s adrenaline but his whole body drained from energy and he took off his gun holster, his shoes and his jacket, before making his way to the bathroom. He wasted no time shrugging his clothes off, putting on an old t-shirt and some sweatpants before heading to Magnus’ bedroom and falling head first on the bed.

Magnus mumbled something in his sleep and shuffled closer, sighing in content as he buried his face in Alec’s chest.

“Can you believe my roommate is a freaking hero?” he asked, although he didn’t open his eyes.

Alec chuckled, adjusting the blanket to cover them both properly. “I wouldn’t have done it if you hadn’t helped me figure out what that card was,” he replied.

“You would have find out eventually,” Magnus said with unwavering faith, wrapping an arm around Alec’s waist, his fingers trailing lazily along his ribs. “I’m just glad it’s over and I can stop worrying about you 24/7.”

Alec buried his smile in Magnus’ hair, and hissed in pain, drawing back when it made his cheek ache, cursing internally. Magnus pulled back and his eyes fluttered open immediately, widening when he stared up at him.

“What happened?” he exclaimed.

“It’s nothing,” Alec said immediately.

“It’s not nothing!” Magnus protested, reaching out to brush his fingers on Alec’s cheek lightly. “What happened?”

“Well, he didn’t come willingly,” Alec said softly, shrugging. “We got into a fight, he punched me. I kicked his ass and arrested him. End of story. Nothing to worry about.”

Magnus pouted, his feathery touch hovering above the bruise on Alec’s cheek bone.

“People have no respect nowadays,” he said. “Who would dare damage such a pretty face?”

“I’m okay,” Alec whispered again and tightened his hold around Magnus. “Go back to sleep.”

“Nowadays, people know the price of everything and the value of nothing,” Magnus murmured, and reluctantly obliged, resting his head over Alec’s heart.

“Mmh,” Alec muttered, already half asleep. “I love it when you quote Oscar Wilde at me.”

Magnus chuckled. “Your book nerd ass is so easily turned on.”

Alec didn’t reply, but he was smiling when he felt Morpheus’ arms wrap around him and the realization settle in his mind that Lydia had been right.

He was in love with his best friend.

.

Alec woke up with a foggy mind and his body aching all over, but more rested than he had been in months. He opened his eyes slowly, only to find Chairman Meow curled up on his chest, fast asleep, and Magnus sitting with his legs crossed next to him, headphones in his ears and his laptop in front of him on the mattress.

“What are you watching?” he asked, voice still hoarse from sleep and Magnus startled slightly, making the Chairman jump awake and leap off the bed and out of the room.

“How I Met Your Mother,” he said, sending Alec an admonishing look that made a smirk tug at the corner of his lips. “The finale.”

Alec groaned, stretching. “Why would you do this to yourself? It’s terrible.”

“I know,” Magnus said with a nod. “I just thought I would watch it again to see if I liked it better now.”

“Did you?”

“Nope.”

“Still not over Barney and Robin not ending up together?”

“Nope,” Magnus said, the word popping out of his mouth. “I’ll forever be mad about it. It’s ridiculous. They shouldn’t have been torn apart so easily. They were meant for each other.”

“And they were best friends before they were lovers,” Alec pointed out, biting on his bottom lip. “I’ve been told those relationships usually last.”

Magnus went still, fingers hovering on his keyboard but unmoving. “Yeah,” he breathed out, clearing his throat, eyes firmly set on the screen. “I mean, they are bound to know all your bad habits already.”

Alec hummed in agreement. “They’ve probably met your family so you don’t have to go through the awkward meeting the parents phase.”

“And they already know about your past relationships,” Magnus added, licking his lips. “No need to hide the dating disasters of your past.”

“And you already know what you have in common, so dates aren’t that hard to plan,” Alec remarked.

“But you’ve probably had your first date,” Magnus said, and he finally allowed himself to look at Alec, eyes wide and vulnerable, cheeks flushed just slightly enough to match Alec’s. “You just didn’t call it that.”

“And they’ve seen you at your best and at your worst at least a hundred times but they like you just the same,” he said in a whisper.

Magnus nodded. “And under-dressed. Probably even wearing awful Christmas sweaters.”

Alec chuckled, but got interrupted by the sound of his phone ringing on the night table. He grunted but shuffled to grab it, answering without even checking the name on his screen.

“What?” he blurted out. “I swear if this isn’t some life or death situation -”

Luke’s warm chuckle echoed through the line and Alec immediately straightened up on the bed, eyes widening. Magnus paused his episode, sending him a puzzled look.

“Oh, hi, Sir,” Alec said, clearing his throat.

“Don’t worry, Lightwood. I won’t be long.”

“N-No, it’s alright,” Alec rambled. “I-I just woke up and -”

“And you deserve one day off without anyone bothering you,” Luke cut in, the smile obvious in his voice. “I actually come in peace. And with good news.”

“I’m listening.”

“The mayor called me this morning,” Luke said. “Heard about your heroic arrest last night.”

“I-I wasn’t alone, Sir,” Alec said at once. “I had back up and if Magnus hadn’t told me about that club -”

“Alec, shut up,” Luke interrupted, ruthless.

He opened his mouth to answer but closed it again, humming in agreement instead.

“Congratulations, Lightwood,” Luke said then, cheerfully. “You’re getting a promotion. It’ll be Sergeant Lightwood from now on.”

Alec’s mouth fell open. “R-Really?”

“Yup.”

“What’s going on?” Magnus asked, his face a mask of both concern and curiosity.

“I’ll let you get back to your man,” Luke said on the phone, and Alec was too bewildered to bother correcting him.

“Bye, Sir. Thank you, Sir.”

“What’s going on?” Magnus inquired again as soon as Alec had hung up, kneeling on the bed, laptop long forgotten. “Is everything alright?”

“I’m getting a promotion,” Alec exclaimed with a wide grin. “I’m being made Sergeant!”

Magnus blinked, and beamed. “Oh, Alexander, that’s wonderful!” he exclaimed and all but jumped at his neck, pulling him into a hug with such strength that they both went crashing down on the mattress.

Alec laughed against his ear, wrapping his arms around Magnus’ waist. He pressed a kiss to the bridge of his ear, nuzzling against his skin and couldn’t have missed the way Magnus’ breath hitched in his throat. Alec pressed another kiss to his cheek, to his jaw, to his pulse point and Magnus pulled back to stare down at him, resting his hands on both sides of his head.

Alec stared right back, and he knew. He knew Magnus too much not to see what was right in front of him. He pushed on his elbows and leaned in. Magnus met him halfway, and their lips melded together perfectly, but neither of them was truly surprised.

Their mouths fitted together like their minds had, messily at first but evidently the next moment.

It was a slow kiss, languid and tender, caring and passionate.

It was an of course. Of course it is you. Of course it has always been you. Of course it will be you.

They pulled back eventually, if only because lungs needed air and stuff like that and Magnus shifted to adjust his position on top of Alec, resting his chin on his hands and over his chest.

“I love you,” Alec said in a whisper.

“Thank God,” Magnus sighed dramatically. “It would have been very awkward otherwise.”

Alec chuckled, leaning down to peck his lips lightly and Magnus hummed appreciatively, nipping playfully at his bottom lip.

“I love you too,” he muttered against his mouth, before moving up to plant a feathery kiss on Alec's bruised cheek.

“It's kinda weird that this is not weird at all,” Alec muttered absently as Magnus’ mouth worked on distracting him, shifting lower to suck on his neck.

“It might start getting weird if we have sex,” Magnus pointed out.

“Yes,” Alec breathed out, and he brought a hand down to Magnus’ ass to align their hips.

“We should wait,” Magnus said, and bit on the sensitive skin where Alec's shoulder met his neck.

“Or…” he trailed off.

“Or we should test that theory and get it over with right now,” Magnus said, tongue poking to sooth the red mark he had left.

“Great minds,” Alec panted and closed his fingers in Magnus’ hair, drawing him in a downright filthy kiss.

.

“Totally not weird,” Magnus panted, crashing on the pillow.

“Nope,” Alec breathed out. “I have many words coming up to my mind but weird definitely isn’t one of them.”

Magnus smiled, turning his head to look at him. “I’m going to take a shower and then we can Netflix and chill?”

Alec chuckled, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. “I know what that means,” he said, but couldn’t keep the amusement away from his voice. “I’m not completely clueless.”

Magnus rolled on his stomach, resting on his elbows to lean in and plant a quick kiss to his lips. “I hope you know, because I want to Netflix and chill all day and all night long.”

“I’m still tired,” Alec admitted with a grimace. “I’m not going to last all day long.”

Magnus couldn’t have cared less. He was content enough watching stupid movies and debating about them for hours as long as he could steal a kiss or two every now and then. “Pick something to watch, I’ll be right back.”

And he rolled out of bed, grabbing his discarded laptop to shove him on the mattress next to Alec on his way to the bathroom. He had barely the time to let his sore muscles relax before a pair of strong hands grabbed at his hips, hauling him backwards and against a strong chest.

“I picked a movie,” Alec said against his neck. Magnus leaned against him with a smile. “It’s called The Mortal Instruments. Looks fun.”

Magnus hummed in content, turning his head to peck his lips. “I’ve heard the TV show is much better.”

“We’re not going to watch it anyway,” Alec replied, mischief dripping off his tone. “I’m actually not that tired.”

Magnus laughed, swirling around in his arms to wrap his arms around his neck. “I love you.”

“And I love you,” Alec said at once, and it seemed as obvious as their friendship had been.

.

There was one simple and unique rule about being friends with Magnus and Alec: never, ever, no matter the circumstances, not even if you are drunk as an armada of skunks, turn up at their apartment without giving them a warning first. You’d most likely end up traumatized. Also, never engage into a debate about pop culture with either of them, and especially not  _ the both of them _ .

There were some power couples one shouldn’t go up against.

**Author's Note:**

> And they fucked like bunnies. The end.
> 
>  
> 
> Elle, I hope you liked your present and I wish you a great holiday, parabrotai <3
> 
> I'm on tumblr [@lecrit](http://lecrit.tumblr.com/) and on twitter [@_L_ecrit](https://twitter.com/_L_ecrit) ❤


End file.
